Objective To compare the usefulness of contrast-enhanced T1 high resolution isotropic volume excitation (THRIVE) sequence and fat-saturated TSE sequence in detection of spinal metastases.Methods Thirty-one consecutive patients with spinal metastases were recruited.All patients received post-contrast TSE T1WI followed by a fat-suppressed THRIVE sequence.The number of lesions,SNR and CNR for both sequences,and the scoring of image quality concerning motion-artifact and tumor conspicuity were compared.Results Acquisition time of the post-contrast TSE T1W sequence and the THRIVE sequence was 2 min 55 s and 33 s,respectively.No significant difference was found in the number of lesions detected between the two sequences (Z=-0.816,P=0.414).The SNR (432.54±271.60) and CNR (233.27± 197.65) of the THRIVE sequence were significantly lower than the SNR (674.32±375.79) and CNR (312.38±207.49) of the TSE T1W sequence respectively (t=-4.366,-2.660,P＜0.001,0.012).Tumor conspicuity of the post-contrast TSE sequence was better than that of THRIVE sequence (Z=-4.082,P＜0.001),while the motion-artifact in TSE sequence was more severe (Z=2.291,P=0.022).Conclusion The post-contrast THRIVE sequence is capable of decreasing acquisition time and motion-artifact.Besides,its detected efficacy is equal to that of TSE sequence.There is practical possibility to replace the conventional post-contrast TSE T1WI sequence with the THRIVE sequence in the imaging of spinal metastases.